Chapter 70 Chapter 70
“Honey, be good. Don't move like that.”
He buried his face in her hair, breathing heavily.
His voice was hoarse, almost a pleading request.
“Just let me hold you... just a little longer.”
Caroline stiffened.
But when she heard that muffled plea... she simply stopped.
He didn't demand it.
He didn't order it.
He asked.
And that disarmed her more than any physical force could have.
She remained still, not moving, while he held her securely in his arms—both of them breathing at different rates, but slowly meeting in the middle.
After a few minutes, his breathing began to stabilize.
The arm that had previously wrapped around her desperately loosened.
Nicholas finally lifted his face and looked at her.
“Love...” His voice was even more hoarse, almost painful. “Aren't you ready yet?”
His eyes pierced through her.
“I said I'd give you a week...” he murmured, caressing her cheek with his thumb. “There are only two days left.”
I hope that by then you'll be able to get used to me. I don't want you to keep rejecting me like this.
Caroline opened her mouth to reply, but he continued:
“I want us to be a real couple.” His fingers slid gently across her face, down to her chin. “Not just on paper.”
The intensity of his words made her heart stumble.
“My patience has limits, Carol.” He stared deeply into her eyes. “I don't want to force you into anything. But do you understand what I want? Do you understand how much I want you?”
He didn't hide it.
He never hid it.
Not his possessiveness, not his jealousy, not his desire.
And all of that had intensified after seeing Edward in that hall.
Caroline felt it.
He didn't need to say it.
Even so, he said it—with a cloudy, sincere look:
“You were in a ten-year relationship with him.” His jaw tightened. “He was your first love. The man you almost married.”
With each word, there was a real twinge of pain in his voice.
“Do you think that doesn't affect me?” He lowered his head, resting his forehead against hers. “Do you think it's easy for me to know that your husband could have been someone else?”
Caroline held her breath.
“If Edward hadn't betrayed you...” Nicholas murmured, more quietly. “Today, you would be Mrs. Collins. And not my wife.”
The pain he refused to admit he felt was all there, hidden in the corners of his eyes.
“I know you didn't erase those ten years overnight.” He ran his thumb slowly across the corner of her mouth. “And I know he still thinks about you. Men know other men. I saw it in his eyes.”
She stood motionless.
“If you still feel something for him...” Nicholas took a deep breath, as if admitting a shameful fear. “It wouldn't be impossible for you two to get back together one day.”
The confession stunned Caroline.
The president of Wolf Company...
A man so domineering, so cold, so feared...
was afraid.
Afraid of losing her.
“I can't feel secure until I have you completely.” He held her by the nape of her neck, firmly but with trembling tenderness. “Until you are truly my wife.”
Caroline swallowed hard, her heart pounding in her chest.
She was about to speak.
She was going to say something.
But Nicholas silenced her with a soft kiss on her forehead—so tender it almost made her cry.
“Go, my love.” He released her slowly, as if it were difficult to let her go. “Think about what I said.”
He took a step back, still panting, still shirtless, still fighting his own desire.
“I'm a normal man, Carol.” His voice was low, almost a restrained moan. “Keeping all this inside me all the time is torture.”
He caressed her cheek once more.
“A week is enough for you to adjust.” He smiled crookedly, a tired, hungry smile. “And to be ready.”
He didn't order her.
He didn't demand it.
He didn't pressure her.
He just... told her his truth.
Nicholas wanted her.
All of her.
Willingly.
Only his.
And Caroline left there dizzy—afraid, yes... but also touched in a way she couldn't explain.
Caroline left the bathroom with her face still burning and her heart completely out of rhythm.
Nicholas had made something very clear, even without saying it directly:
he only had two more days of patience.
And, to be fair... he was being much more respectful than many men would be.
If he wanted to, according to the contract between them, she wouldn't even have the right to refuse.
But he didn't force her.
He waited.
He held back his own desire until he almost lost control.
And that memory—of his gaze, hungry for her—made her legs go weak.
Worse, though, was the thought that came next:
if Nicholas really was a virgin... then she was the only one who wasn't.
Shame rose to her eyes.
What if he found out?
Would he be disgusted? Disappointed?
She bit her lip nervously, feeling cold sweat trickle down the back of her neck.
That's when her phone rang again.
Caroline looked at the display.
Sheila Emma Turner.
The name made her heart flutter.
His voice... the way Hiago spoke of her...
She was the ONLY woman Nicholas seemed to genuinely like enough to be friends with.
Before she could decide whether to answer or not, the bathroom door opened.
And Caroline stopped breathing.
Nicholas came out wearing only a black silk robe—loose, baggy, revealing more skin than it hid.
Drops of water still trickled down his face and collarbones.
His firm chest was visible through the open fabric.
He was the kind of man who was provocative just by breathing.
Caroline stared—and when she realized it, he was already right in front of her, holding her chin.
“Darling...” he whispered in the lowest, most seductive voice in the world. “Do you want me to take off my robe so you can get a better look?”
BAM.
Her face turned bright red.
“N-no need!”
He smiled, absolutely satisfied with her reaction.
“Are you sure?” He tilted his head mischievously. “Because I may change my mind in a minute.”
“I-I'm sure!” Caroline stammered, terrified.
To escape, she pointed to his cell phone:
“Um... someone's calling you.”
Nicholas finally seemed to notice and, with complete naturalness—as if he weren't almost naked—picked up the phone.
On the other end, a cheerful female voice sounded:
“Nick! What took you so long? What were you doing?”